Your eyes look like coming home
by TheGleekyGeek
Summary: AU: Ryder and Kitty meet when they're five years old and become best friends. Multi-fic following through their childhood and teenage years, all the way up to college. They maintain their friendship along the way and become childhood sweethearts.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **Okay before I start this story, I wanted to write a quick outline/summary for what you guys should expect from it. It's going to cover Kitty and Ryder's story from meeting as five year olds on the playground to their mid-twenties and college. I've planned out 10/11 chapters with each chapter based around an event in their lives from a different age. I was inspired by the song 'Everything has Changed' by Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift and the super adorable music video so it'll cover their journey from childhood friends into childhood sweethearts. I would leave some ambiguity but if you've heard the song and know this a Kyder story, you're going to know their endgame. I will try my best to keep up with it and update frequently but life may get in the way. Reviews will motivate me more though so please do leave one if you're reading, it's always good to know people are actually reading your stories! Now, let's get to it…

**(First Meetings – Age 5)**

Kitty played with her long blonde hair, twirling it around her fingers as she glanced around the classroom full of other children. It had been a few weeks since she started school and she'd made a few friends since she'd started, mainly the girls who lived down her road but they didn't really interest her too much. They were obsessed with Barbie dolls and tea parties, both of which Kitty couldn't stand. She was more interested in running around, playing on the adventure playground and generally getting stuck in with the boys. This hadn't been a problem for Kitty until now. She had two older brothers, both of whom allowed her to play with them and took no prisoners when it came to playground games. However the boys at school and in her class were different, they didn't want to play with her and made it clear that she wasn't welcome to join in, just because she was a girl.

Kitty's eyes moved over each of the tables in the classroom, each occupied by a single gender. She didn't understand why the teacher grouped them like that because she'd rather be sitting with the boys but she knew she couldn't complain, as she didn't want to draw any attention to herself. The girls at her table were either working on simple worksheet they'd been given or talking about who had what Barbie and which Barbies were better than the others. At the next table over, she could hear the boys discussing football teams and who could give the best wedgie. Kitty looked over to the table just as the boy on the end closest to her looked up at the same time. He locked eyes with her, and gave her a small, friendly smile before dropping his eyes back down to the sheet of paper in front of him. Kitty watched him curiously for a few seconds before leaning over the gap in the tables to talk to him. "Hey, are you doing the work?" She asked, trying to think of a way to talk to him.

"No, I'm not." The boy shook his head. "I'm drawing stuff." He shrugged shyly, holding up the piece of paper to show her his doodles, all of which Kitty recognised as the superheroes that her brothers loved to talk about.

"Oh… well your drawings are very good, especially the one of Superman." Kitty nodded as she looked over the boy, taking in his shaggy hair and his cheeky smile.

"Really? You know superheroes? But you're a girl?" The boy asked, looking up at her in surprise as he put the paper back down on the desk and turned to face her.

"So? I have brothers and just because I'm a girl, it doesn't mean anything." Kitty shrugged her shoulders, continuing to play with her hair as she spoke.

"Well you're cool then, cooler than all the other girls here." The boy nodded as he watched her play with her hair. "I'm Ryder by the way." He said as the bell rang for recess and before she could reply, he was yanked out of his seat by one of the other boys and pulled towards the playground.

Kitty sighed as she watched him leave with the other boys, before standing up and making her way out into the playground. All of the other girls headed towards a grassy picnic area where they could play with their dolls. Kitty followed them, sitting down and boredly looking around the playground. Her gaze then fell upon Ryder playing on his own in the sandbox, building sandcastles. She smiled as she saw him playing, standing up and leaving the group of girls to head over to him.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Kitty asked, sitting down in the sand opposite Ryder.

"I'm building a fort for my men." Ryder shrugged, gesturing towards the sandcastle he was building and then towards a pile of superhero action figures lying next to him.

"Okay." Kitty chuckled softly as he explained. "Why aren't you playing with the other boys?" She asked, glancing over at the rest of her boys, who were playing football and tackling each other to the ground on the other side of the field.

Ryder followed her gaze, sighing sadly before he answered. "They said I'm not allowed to play with them because I'm a girl."

"What? But you're a boy?" Kitty asks, frowning in confusion at his answer.

"Yeah but it's because of my hair." Ryder sighed, gesturing to his long, shaggy hair.

"That's stupid, boys are stupid." Kitty nodded. "No offence." She added hurriedly with a chuckle.

"It's okay, the rest of them are." Ryder nodded his head in agreement. "So how come you aren't with the rest of the girls and the Barbies?"

"Because Barbies are stupider than the boys." Kitty shrugged cooly.

"You can say that again." Ryder laughed. "Well since you're here, do you wanna help me with my game?" He asked with his shy, cheeky smile.

"I'd love to." Kitty nodded, returning his smile as she picked up a bucket and started to fill it with sand.

"I don't know if you heard me before but I'm Ryder." Ryder told her as he helped to build the sandcastles.

"Yeah I did." Kitty nodded. "I'm Kitty." She replied, putting the finishing touches to their sand fort.

"Well Kitty, would you like to be Superman or Batman?" Ryder asked, picking up the action figures and offering them to her, smiling as she took the Superman figure.

**A/N:** So it's a little shorter than I would have liked but there we go, they've met each other and we're off!


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **Oh my god, I suck so much and I'm sorry. Real life has been kicking my ass and my inspiration for writing fan fic has been running low! But I was sat on a bus earlier with a 2 hour journey ahead of me and my laptop and I just randomly got some inspiration for this story and managed to write this. I will continue updating this but I can't make any promises for how long it's gonna be! I hope you enjoy this and I'm sorry again for the long gap!

(**First Kisses – Age 9)**

It had been fouryears since Kitty and Ryder first met in the sandbox and their friendship was still going strong. They had a playful friendship, they liked to tease each other and call each other names but they knew that deep down, they did care for each other. They were happiest playing in the playground or creating adventures in their head. They liked physical games and wrestling each other was not uncommon and despite her much smaller frame, Kitty could hold her own against him.

But recently Kitty had been feeling a little isolated from the rest of the girls in her year. They were keener on girly things such as dolls, painting pretty pictures and they were becoming increasingly interested in much more grown up things including make-up and boys. That was something she really didn't understand, who would want to kiss a boy? It seemed such an alien and unappealing concept to her. It may her feel odd, like there was something wrong with her. She'd seen the films; the princess always had a prince to rescue her, or to kiss her. They always lived happily ever after and they all had a love interest. Kitty wanted a happily ever after but did she really want a boy to share it with? Definitely not.

However this played on her mind as she sat in class listening to some of the girls talking about who had a crush on who. She continued listening discreetly as she heard about how Emily had kissed Mike that morning and how they were now officially 'boyfriend' and 'girlfriend' and were going to get married on the playground at recess. She looked up as one of the girls mentioned not kissing anyone, it gave her hope that she wasn't alone with her unpopular opinion. The looks that were suddenly pointed at the confessor quickly shot through her optimism. There were looks of confusion and of disapproval among others. It dashed Kitty's hopes that she would be accepted for not liking boys yet. Sure she was happy on her own and with her friendship with Ryder but she'd still like to fit in with the other girls.

She quietly went back to her work, quickly making her way out of the classroom as the recess bell went, determined not to be caught by the girls and their questions. Kitty soon found Ryder, dragging him off to the far corner of the playground.

"You alright?" Ryder asked, raising an eyebrow at her once she'd let go of his t-shirt.

"No, I mean yes, I don't know." Kitty sighed softly, looking down at her feet.

"What's up?" He asked, watching her curiously. He was used to the boisterous Kitty, the one who would challenge him to races and fights and not the Kitty in front of him, the shy and quiet one.

"It's just… I don't know." Kitty repeated, sighing as she saw the disbelieving look on Ryder's face. He was her best friend, she could tell him, right? "Fine, have you ever kissed anyone?" She asked slowly.

Ryder was ready to push her for an answer when she suddenly gave him one. He was a little thrown by her question before he shook his head. "No, I haven't. Why?"

"Just, the other girls. If you haven't kissed a boy yet then they see you as some sort of freak. I don't want to kiss anyone but I also want them to like me, you know?" Kitty explained quietly, a little ashamed of herself for being so desperate for their approval.

"I see, I see." Ryder nodded. "The other boys are the same. Well they don't see you as a freak but you're known as one of the cool ones. But don't worry, it's their loss because you're an amazing friend and they'd be lucky to be your friend."

Kitty smiled at Ryder's compliments before a small smirk crossed her face as an idea popped into her head.

"What are you thinking Wilde?" Ryder asked as he saw the smirk appear on her lips, knowing it was usually when she had a plan or scheme she wanted to try.

"Well… I was just thinking that you're a boy, I'm a girl… we could help each other out here." Kitty shrugged. "So we kiss, it only has to be for like a second or two and then it gets the girls off my back and you get to be one of the cool boys. We don't have to get married or be boyfriend and girlfriend, just a one time thing that we both benefit from."

Ryder listened to her suggestion, thinking it over for a few seconds before nodding slowly. "Yeah, that makes sense. I mean it'll be weird because you're you, you're my best friend but yeah, this could work. I do wanna be one of the cool ones and if it helps you out then that's just a bonus." He smiled. "So, uh, how do you wanna do this?" He asked awkwardly.

Kitty grinned as he agreed to her suggestion. She nodded in agreement as he called it weird. "Yeah, totally. Don't worry, I'm not about to gonna go all weird and smushy on you. I still think you're gross but you are a boy so…" She smiled. "Uh okay, I don't really know. I guess being closer would help." She joked nervously, stepping closer to him.

"Yeah, I guess." Ryder nodded, stepping forward at the same time, bumping into her as she stepped forward. "Sorry." He mumbled awkwardly. "So we've got closer down, I guess it's go time." He shrugged, closing his eyes before leaning down towards her.

Kitty rolled her eyes as he stepped into her, feeling just as awkward about the whole thing. "I guess." She repeated, nodding. She almost backed away as she saw him close his eyes but the girls' voices in her head were enough for her to close her eyes and lean up to press her lips against his. They stayed their for a second or two at most before her eyes flew open, her hands moving to his chest to push him away from her. "Eww, that was gross." She groaned.

Ryder didn't know what to expect but it wasn't what it felt like. It was an odd feeling as he felt Kitty's lips meet his own. They had barely been there for long when he felt himself being pushed backwards. He laughed, nodding in agreement. "Uh yeah, definitely. So gross. Why do people want to do this?" He asked with a small chuckle.

"I have no idea." Kitty shook her head, wiping her lips against her hand. "I don't want to ever do that again." She murmured. "No offence or anything." She added.

"No offence taken." Ryder shrugged. "It wasn't exactly fun for me either."

"Now excuse me, I have some girls to find." Kitty smiled, stepping around him. She was excited to finally have something to tell the girls that they'd approve of, winning fights against the boys wasn't exactly on their list of worthwhile achievements. "Thanks though Lynn." She turned back to him, holding her hand up for a high five. "You're awesome."

"Go ahead." Ryder laughed, already looking forward to telling the boys that he'd kissed a girl. He already knew a few of them would discount it as it was Kitty, and she was more often than not seen as one of the boys. He smiled, high fiving Kitty back. "You're welcome." He nodded as Kitty turned and headed away from him again.


End file.
